Please critiquemy daycare menu

[corrie43]

UPDATED MENUS ADDED IN LATER POSTS TO REFLECT SUGGESTIONS----


I have made a 5 week rotation menu for my daycare.Could you check it and maybe give me ideas. I feel it is too repetitive on friuts and veggies, but inMaine we don't have a long growing season. Ideas for daycare friendly meals would be great!

5 week menu rotation

Breakfast each week
Monday- cereal with milk and bananas
Tuesday- Oatmeal with Apple slice, milk
Wed- Toast with toppings and mandarin oranges, milk
Thursday- Eggs, peaches, milk
Friday- Pancakes, applesauce, milk

Lunches- All lunches served with SKIM MILK
Week 1
Monday- Tacos with salsa and lettuce, corn and rice
Tuesday- Turkey and cheese on a wheat wrap, strawberry banana smoothie, cucumber slices
Wednesday-Chicken nuggets, tator tots, raw veggies with dip
Thursday-homemade mac and cheese, peas and apple slices
Friday- Chicken noodle soup with crackers, mixed peaches and pears

Week 2
Monday- Baked beans and hot dogs, wheat roll, mandarin oranges
Tuesday- Sloppy joes, corn, peaches
Wednesday- Whole wheat English muffin pizzas, green beans, applesauce
Thursday- Baked pasta, broccoli and apple slices
Friday- Toasted cheese on wheat, tomato soup, pears

Week 3-
Monday- Sheppard’s pie, apple slices, whole wheat roll
Tuesday- Tuna salad on wheat, raw veggies to dip
Wednesday-PB and J wheat rollups, applesauce, kiwi slices
Thursday- Spaghetti with meat sauce, salad, pears
Friday- Egg salad on wheat, raisins and carrots

Week 4-
Monday- Vegetable lasagna, peaches
Tuesday- Pizza, green beans, pears
Wednesday-Cheese quesadillas, salsa, and broccoli
Thursday- Chicken nuggets, tator tots, apples, raisins
Friday- Ham steak, pineapple, rice and corn

Week 5-
Monday- Teriyaki chicken, rice, broccoli, snap peas
Tuesday- Scrambled eggs, toast, bananas, peaches
Wednesday- Toasted Cheese on wheat, peas, fruit smoothie
Thursday- Cheese ravioli with or without sauce, green beans, pears
Friday- Hamburgers, corn, baked French fries

[Alyantavid]

I think it looks good. I would serve whole milk though instead of skim.

As a mom to a dairy allergic kid who attends daycare, what will you do about food allergies?

[corrie43]

I hve been lucky to not have any kids with allergies, but for days when we serve pb and j, the kids under two will get cheese instead of peaut butter. I would just sub something else or rework the menu a bit. it alldepends on the allergy. It would not be safe for a peanut allergic child to come here because my kids and I both eat tons of it. Iave it daily for breakfat actually. I would strongly suggest the parent to look for a peanut free daycare because it wouldn't be safe at mine.

[Alyantavid]

I was just curious as to how you handle allergies since it varies so much from daycare to daycare.

[Magelet]

It looks pretty good. I agree, it should be whole milk instead of skim.

Also, everything looks super healthy and yummy to me, except the chicken nuggets and tater tots? unless maybe they're homemade versions?

[cristeen]

Honestly, your breakfast menu is really high on sugars and low on protein. Only one day a week do you have a meal where you're specifically serving them any protein. Are they getting a mid-morning snack? Are you seeing behavioral problems mid-morning (due to sugar crashing)?

Your lunch menus look pretty good, but you have days where you have little protein at breakfast and then again at lunch... behavioral problems, meltdowns, sugar crashes and the like are liable to be rampant on those days. Hot dogs, sloppy joes, chicken nuggets and tater tots are not on my list of healthy foods unless you're making them from scratch (or getting them nitrate free in the case of hot dogs).

Honestly, there's too much reliance on bread and pasta for my taste. I understand you may be catering to families who eat more of a SAD, but personally that menu would have me packing my kid's meals or looking for another daycare situation. But, I live in the land of abundant produce.

What are the laws governing your menus? You're giving these kids milk twice a day - what would you do for a child who doesn't like milk? A child whose parents don't want them drinking that much milk? A child who is lactose intolerant? A child who is allergic?

And as far as produce goes - are you locked into this menu? Can you make changes as what's available changes? Right now peaches aren't in season, so you'd either be paying a premium for imported peaches or buying them canned/frozen. In the height of summer, the same goes for pears, whereas cherries, apricots, nectarines and plums are in season, pears, apples and kiwi are not. That's just liable to be hard on the budget.

[velochic]

Honestly, for us, that seems to be an imbalanced diet with way too much processed food and meats that are probably not grass-fed/organic. The soups are probably canned, the lunch meat has nitrites, the bread probably has HFCS. It seems like there is the possibility for far, far too much sodium. I know in my family, we set the bar high, though, and on the other end of the spectrum, for the mainstream family, your menu could lean toward the "too healthy/my-kid-won't eat-it" side. I don't know what your audience is, but if I sent my dd there, she would bring her lunch. You seem to be have found a good middle-ground, though, for the general population.

[MammaG]

Sounds pretty good but I'd want whole milk and I'd ask you if your chicken nuggets and tater tots were homemade. I'd aslo check with you that the hot dogs and ham steak were nitrate-free.

Oh, and do you make your own sloppy joe sauce, because what I've seen in the cans is pretty heinous?

And I guess if it were me I'd stick to oatmeal with a variety of toppings or eggs for breakfast.

That sounds critical and my control-freakish, why-I-stay-home tendancies are showing! It sounds like you've put a lot of thought into it and that menu is undoubtedly light years ahead of what a lot of kids get...kudos to you.

[wife&mommy]

I think its great generally speaking and especially compared to most kids. But with my family in particular I'd have a lot of questions about the ingredients! Honestly if my kids were going somewhere else I'd probably just send a lunch to avoid that all together.

[Ola_]

I find it too heavy on the carbs also, esp. at breakfast. And I definitely agree that milk should not be skim for kids. I'm not big on processed meats so I'm not crazy about the hot dogs or chicken nuggets either.

For a lot of the items on your list I think it really depends on where they're coming from. Is the chicken noodle soup home made or is it a can of Campbells or a packet of Lipton's? Home made spaghetti sauce or canned? Etc.

[corrie43]

Ok, have a updated menu here.. I am on the USDAfood program,so I have to have for breakfast.

grain,fruit, milk I will work on more protien for the breakfasts...Any ideas?

lunch- protien,grain milk,2 fruits or veggies.

all bread is 100% whole grain,everything is high fructose corn syrup free and almost everything is from scratch (beans are canned). Eggs are local free range as well as the chicken.

The food program reccomends skim milk, why is whole a better choice.

5 week menu rotation

Breakfast each week
Monday- cereal with milk and bananas
Tuesday- Oatmeal with Apple slice, milk
Wed- Toast with toppings and mandarin oranges, milk
Thursday- Eggs, muffin or bread, peaches, milk
Friday- Pancakes, applesauce, milk

Lunches- All lunches served with SKIM MILK
Week 1
Monday- Taco meat over rice with salsa and lettuce, corn
Tuesday- Turkey and cheese on a wheat wrap, strawberry banana smoothie, cucumber slices
Wednesday-Chicken nuggets, whole wheat roll, tator tots, raw veggies with dip
Thursday-homemade mac and cheese, peas and apple slices
Friday- Chicken noodle soup with crackers, mixed peaches and pears

Week 2
Monday- Black beans and rice, raw bell peppers w/ dip, mixed berries
Tuesday- Baked beans and hot dogs, wheat roll, mandarin oranges
Wednesday- Whole wheat English muffin pizzas, green beans, applesauce
Thursday- Baked 3 cheese pasta, broccoli and apple slices
Friday- Toasted cheese on wheat, tomato soup, pears

Week 3-
Monday- Sheppard’s pie, apple slices, whole wheat roll
Tuesday- Tuna salad on wheat, raw veggies to dip, grapes
Wednesday-PB and J wheat rollups, applesauce, kiwi slices, organic yogurt
Thursday- Spaghetti with meat sauce, salad, pears
Friday-Lentil soup, whole grain crackers, raisins and carrots

Week 4-
Monday- Creamy chicken over rice, green beans, fruit cocktail
Tuesday- Pizza, green beans, pears
Wednesday-Cheese quesadillas w/ salsa and broccoli
Thursday- Vegetable lasagna, peaches
Friday-split pea soup, ham steak, pineapple,

Week 5-
Monday- Teriyaki chicken, with rice, broccoli, snap peas
Tuesday- Toasted Cheese on wheat, peas, fruit smoothie
Wednesday- Scrambled eggs, toast, bananas, peaches
Thursday- Cheese ravioli with or without sauce, green beans, pears
Friday- White chili with cannellini beans and chicken, corn, baked sweet potato fries

[caiesmommy]

I do appriciate the updated menu more..A LOT more. I think it's great that you've added more vegetarian choices...not only b/c I am a vegetarian, but I think its great that kids might be trying new and exciting foods that their parents might not give them

Here's some more ideas
-you can easily add protein to pancakes by throwing in things like hemp seeds. Small enough so theirs no choking hazard but full of protein. I would also try and add some fruit into the pancakes as well
-I don't really understand the toast with toppings thing? what about french toast with fruit on top instead?
-Fruit and yogurt parfaits are a great breakfast idea..yogurt, fruit, granola and a protein like seeds
-Homemade veggie alphabet soup w beans-super quick and kids love it..great way to use up extra produce and beans
-hummus w veggies and pitas
-scrambled eggs in pitas with lettuce and tomato
-oven roasted breakfast potatoes are big here and cheap
-pinto bean/veg/cornbread casserole-somewhat the same idea as the shepards pie-and easy for you to make ahead


I would personally stay away from the fruit cocktail...my kids had it ONCE and OMG the hyperness! My inlaws regret giving it to them

[corrie43]

For the pancakes I make them from scratch with whole wheat flour and flax seeds, I use coconut oil in them and usually blueberrys.

For toast toppings I meant peanut butter or all fruit spreads. But I think french toast is a better idea. That way I get the eggs in there.

I do the chicken nuggets and tator tots because it is a big fave of the kids, but I think I will redo it, so they are homemade and we will have homemade baked fries as well.

I usually buy the sugar free fruit cocktail, but think Iwill change that choice to "in season fruit"..

Also I buy hebrew national hotdogs.. I would have to see if those are nitrate free though.. The ham I would imagine i not because I get whatever is in the store. I will do some more work on the menu and post my updates..Thanks for all the great suggestions, keep em coming...

[Magelet]

whole milk is better because it is less likely to have additives, because our bodies need fat to absorb fat soluble vitamins, and because it keeps us full longer and better (better stabilization of blood sugar than carbs, which also means it is LESS likely to make one fat, rather than more.) Children in particular need saturated fat for their growing brains and bodies. (when you realize that cell walls and the brain are mostly saturated fat, specifically cholesterol, it's obvious that we need some in our diet, particularly children.)
any other points I missed mamas?


For breakfast, I would personally serve eggs or meat every day. (homemade sausage patties with ground meat and some spices.) a scrambled or hard boiled egg, or a small sausage patty or some bacon would go with each breakfast.

I'd make the baked beans from scratch, (with canned beans if need be) because that's bound to be filled with crud.

I can't imagine making tater tots from scratch for a crowd, so I would do oven fries or something instead.

I'd do more apples/veggie/whatever, instead of fruit cocktail.

On days like rice and beans, or veggie lasagne (unless there is a TON of cheese in it), I would also serve hard boiled eggs, slices of cheese, yogurt, or some other animal protein. It will help the kids better absorb the protein in the rice and beans, and extra protein to a day which would otherwise be light on protein.

At that point, I'd say if it's all homemade from scratch, then it looks pretty decent. Too heavy on grains for me, and too much fruit (I think fruit is a treat, and delicious and wouldn't mind my kids eating lots of fresh seasonal fruit, but if it's not fresh and seasonal and a hugely delicious thing to eat, then it's just not worth it. veggies have as many vitamins and minerals and less sugar.), not enough protein, and clearly way way way shy on healthy fats, but working within your constraints it doesn't look bad, particularly if you are useing whole wheat pasta, brown rice etc.

[kavamamakava]

How about breakfast burritos with egg and potato? Or scrambled eggs or hardboiled eggs (sliced up for the little ones).
My daughter went to an in-home daycare for a while and she served oatmeal almost every morning and the kids never got sick of it. Do you really have to have a different meal plan for breakfast every day? It might make it easier if you just do the same thing.

At her new daycare they often get hummus and pita wedges and sometimes even get falafel. They are on the USDA food program so can't serve tofu but I wish they could because my daughter is a vegetarian. Can you serve rice with the lentil soup?
Another idea is you can make wraps and cut them into pinwheels and put all sorts of goodies in them that the kids would likely eat because they are cute. You can use cream cheese or hummus or refried beans and then add thin sliced veggies and lettuce and yogurt sauce or salsa.

[corrie43]

Ok here is another update with work on the breakfast menu and trying toadd more vegetarian dishes. I can not think ofanything to use instead of ham steak with split pea soup.. Maybe do an entirely different soup?? OK foget that,split pea soup counts as a protien in the food program,I jus checked..HOORAY, so now I just need a grain and two veggies that day.


5 week menu rotation


Breakfast each week
Monday- Eggs, and homemade sausage and cheese in a whole wheat wrap, or choice of cereal with milk and bananas
Tuesday- Oatmeal ,Apple slices, organic yogurt, milk
Wed- French Toast with toppings (peanut butter, homemade fruit syrups, all fruit spread) mandarin oranges, milk
Thursday- Scrambled or fried eggs, home made whole wheat blueberry flax muffin, peaches, milk
Friday- Whole wheat/flax Pancakes, applesauce, milk

Lunches- All lunches served with 1 or 2% MILK
Week 1
Monday- Taco meat/bean mixture over rice with salsa and lettuce, corn
Tuesday- Turkey and cheese on a wheat wrap, strawberry banana smoothie, cucumber slices
Wednesday-Home made Chicken nuggets, whole wheat roll, homemade roasted potato fries, raw veggies with dip
Thursday-homemade mac and cheese, peas and apple slices
Friday- Toasted cheese on wheat, organic tomato soup, pears

Week 2
Monday- Black beans and rice, organic yogurt w/mixed berries, raw bell peppers w/ dip,
Tuesday- Baked beans and hot dogs, wheat roll, mandarin oranges
Wednesday- Whole wheat English muffin pizzas, green beans, applesauce
Thursday- Baked 3 cheese pasta, broccoli and apple slices
Friday- Chicken noodle soup with crackers, mixed peaches and pears

Week 3-
Monday- Sheppard’s pie apple slices, whole wheat roll
Tuesday- Tuna salad on wheat, raw veggies to dip, grapes
Wednesday-falafel wraps, applesauce, sautéed spinach, organic yogurt
Thursday- Spaghetti with tomato sauce, carrots and hummus, pears
Friday-Lentil soup, whole grain crackers, string cheese, snap peas and bell peppers with cottage cheese and dill dip

Week 4-
Monday- Creamy chicken over rice, green beans, in season fruit choice
Tuesday- Pizza, green beans, pears
Wednesday-Cheese quesadillas w/ salsa and broccoli
Thursday- Vegetable lasagna, peaches
Friday-split pea soup, whole wheat roll, carrots, pineapple,

Week 5-
Monday- Teriyaki chicken, with rice, broccoli, snap peas
Tuesday- Toasted Cheese on wheat, peas, fruit smoothie
Wednesday- Scrambled eggs,wheat toast, bananas, peaches
Thursday- Cheese ravioli with or without sauce, green beans, pears
Friday- White chili with cannellini beans and chicken, corn, baked sweet potato fries

[corrie43]

good idea adding yogurt or cheese with the beans and rice.

I am still working and tweaking with all your good suggstions. all the kids are used to skim, so we will start slowly with 1% milk and work our way to 2% and maybe whole.

I eat tons of fat myself (coconut oil,avacados,bacon, ect) and lean more toward a grain free diet, but I have to use the food program guidelines....

Myself and my kids age 7 and nine like a variety inbreakfasts,so that is why every day is different,but each week it is the same so it is easy to make sureI have what i need.

[blueridgewoman]

Can I just say, and this is in NO WAY a reflection on you, because I think you've done a great job adapting the standards to some great meal offerings, that I totally abhor the USDA standards for their sponsored meals? Good lord. How much sugar and carbohydrate do they really think kids need? And skim milk? If I gave my child most of the meals that fit with their plan, she'd be crazy hyper and starving in about 20 minutes. Gah. (Again, totally no reflection on you, corrie43- your options seem like the best case scenario. )

[organicmidwestmama]

Originally Posted by blueridgewoman

Can I just say, and this is in NO WAY a reflection on you, because I think you've done a great job adapting the standards to some great meal offerings, that I totally abhor the USDA standards for their sponsored meals? Good lord. How much sugar and carbohydrate do they really think kids need? And skim milk? If I gave my child most of the meals that fit with their plan, she'd be crazy hyper and starving in about 20 minutes. Gah. (Again, totally no reflection on you, corrie43- your options seem like the best case scenario. )

seriously, the usda wants americans prone to obesity and diabetes apparently. your meals do sound about as good as could be within the high-carb, high grain, high-fruit sugar guidlines set forth by the usda.

the usda also says a potato doesnt count as a "grain" so kids end up getting served 2 high-carb/sugarry foods in one setting if theres potatos. im not saying kids should never have potatos, but its just not so healthy, imho to feed both bread and another starch at one meal.

[corrie43]

Honestly if I could afford to give up the food program I would, but we are lower income so they even cover my own kids meals when they eat with the daycare children.. If my income goes up and I get bumped to the lower teir I just may drop it. Yes the standards are crazy. A french frie counts as a veggie, a pop tart, donut, even cake, counts as a grain. So for now I have to work around it.. That is why I figured if I can find help anywhere it would be here in this forum. Everyone would have great ideas for me.